But the storm severely damaged much of the base, included the rented accommodations that had housed the Canadians posted at Tyndall, where the U.S. NORAD headquarters is located.

Canadian teams have since arrived to provide immediate assistance and help families back into their homes or — if they were too damaged — into interim accommodations.

Coates says the storm caused massive damage to Tyndall, leaving it without electricity, water or sewage, but that services are starting to come back.

While the Canadians and their families try to recover from Michael, the U.S. military is working to salvage 17 F-22 stealth fighters worth hundreds of millions of dollars that were caught in the storm.